Wimbledon Park’s members approve constitution amendment

The members of Wimbledon Park Golf Club have agreed to change their articles of association so that they can sell their land to the All England Club for about £65 million.

If the deal goes through it will result in a massive expansion of Wimbledon, which could triple its size.

It will also mean each member of the golf club will receive about £85,000 after tax.

The golf club’s constitution previously said that only members for more than 10 years would have been able to receive the spoils of Wimbledon’s bid.

However the members agreed by more than the 75 per cent majority required to change the articles of association.

A further vote will be required in December to formally approve the bid but an All England Club spokesperson said they were “encouraged” by the Wimbledon Park Golf Club’s decision.

All England Club chairman Philip Brook said that using the northern part of the golf course would allow for a ‘greatly enhanced arrival operation’ during The Championships.

The offer to the golf club also allows for nine holes of the course at the southern end of the site to remain in use – although one year after agreement this would be on a rolling notice of 12 months to quit. It is thought this is partly because there are a number of protected trees in that location.

The golf club will, in any event, fall under the All England Club’s control in 2041 after they bought the leasehold from Merton Council in 1993.

Mick Desmond, Wimbledon’s commercial and media director, said: “We have a fantastic site but we’d like to create a bigger site.

“We believe we will become a much bigger, more prestigious event by getting that land but also give something back to the community.”